Write Here, Write Now: 11.20 – Big Neon Glitter

The Cult – Big Neon Glitter “Drag me back, drag me back, drag me back”

Possibly shortly before I got into the Sisters, I had Love by the Cult. I definitely remember having it in the first term of the sixth form. I was having a discussion with someone who had just joined the school was into Marillion – he had lived with somebody who played She Sells Santuary on repeat all day long. He hated the band. Still, as my friends buggered off after O’levels, it turned out to be worth looking into the parallels between Marillion and the Cult – not much really.

The album was loud guitar fun, together particularly on this track with big dumb thumping drums. Listening to it now, I get the sense that the beat could be that from the Glitterband – hence the song title, maybe. The second best re-use, after Doctoring The Tardis.

The words don’t mean anything, but they sound great, like many a simple rock song. Pretty much the antithesis of what Fish was writing. And Eldritch for that matter. Still, as long as you sign your brain in on the way into the album, the experience doesn’t need to do any lasting damage.

Was it goth? Well, the album came dressed in black with pearl paisley, if I recall correctly. There was something of the discipline I associate with goth, which they would lose completely for the next album , “Electric”. So not quite a return to the rock of the seventies that I had earlier disavowed. Was this rock music I could listen to without it being uncool?

Did I mention that the intro sounds as if it was lifted complete from Pretty Vacant? t certainly prompts the memory buds and gives the song a shot of adrenalin to kick start itself.

But,much as I enjoy the neo-headbanging, I’m now suffering with a tension headache, such is middle age. SO enough for tonight.

 

Write Here, Write Now: 11.18 – Dr Mabuse

Propaganda – Dr Mabuse “Never look back. Never look back”

This could be my favourite song from my school years, in that it connects the early synth pop of OMD with the more ethereal gothic refrains of the Cocteau Twins, effectively spanning the new wave gap with spooky film subject matter, backward lyrics. Teutonic vowel sounds, yet punchy dance rhythms and appealing poppy melodies.

When the song first appeared, the band seemed mysterious, shadowy, slightly sinister. Against the shiny pop of the day, it was a refreshing alternative – less sugary, with what seemed like a whole back log of Germanic culture behind it – sharp, forceful voices, expressionism – it seemed like a whole world of mystery to explore. The music I was most interested in was all veering in one direction – towards the gothic. I was charmed – by the style, the aesthetic, the separation from mainstream pop culture and the dramatic music that went with it. Pretty soon I was to encounter the bands that defined the genre.

 

 

Write Here, Write Now: 11.17 – You Take Me Up

Thompson Twins: You Take Me Up “It’s a labour of love so please don’t ask me why”

I hardly ever hear of the Thompson Twins these days, apart from with a mild tone of derision. Yet back in the 80s they seemed to be one of the biggest pop acts in the world, having a prominent role in Live Aid.

Watching this video now, they do come across as a rather silly cartoon band, which is OK. When they aren’t taking themselves too seriously, as seems the case here, the optimism of the song overcomes the ridiculousness of the song story. “I know what it means to work hard on machines” indeed. They could be characters in a chldren’s tv drama, so hammy are their performances.

Of the music itself, its very percussive and low key, Apart from the harmonica, it’s the lead and backing vocals that really dominate the song.

Back in the 80s, I probably read the Face and i-D as much as the NME and Melody Maker,  so image was as important to me as music, and the Thompson Twins were certainly distinctive in that regard, with their somewhat raggamuffin clothing and idiosyncratic hair.

May be I took Tom Bailey with his mop of hair to be too much like Robert Smith of The Cure and rated his music accordingly. One thing they did write was ‘Sister of Mercy’, but more on that topic later.

 

Write Here, Write Now: 11.16 – The Lovecats

The Cure: – The Lovecats “Let’s go and throw all the songs we know”

Robert Smith channelling his inner Tracey Thorn, this was the first song I knew of by The Cure. Like a lot of the 7″ singles I bought, I was intrigued by the novelty of the record, the jolly, whimsical tone, the bouncy bass, the milk bottle piano notes at the beginning, the squwaly cat sounds. In fact, the only thing I didn’t like was Smith’s hamming it up in the video and being overcute it in the lyrics. It’s like he predicted/predated the internet phenomenon  of lolcats.

It’s about as far from the goth of Faith, Pornography and Disintegration as it’s possible to get, but for me it was a bit of a marker, a way in to that seductive melancholic black.-tinged world. Once I’d got Lovecats, then the Caterpillar Song and Close to Me, it didn’t take long to ask for Standing On The Beach for Christmas, and those earlier singles were revealed to me – A Forest, Charlotte Sometimes, Primary – and the drag to the dark side could begin its inexorable pull on me.

So, think of The Lovecats as a gateway drug.

Write Here, Write Now: 11.15 – Let the Music Play

Shannon – Let The Music Play. ” put us into a groove”

What do I like most about this song? I like the rollercoaster melody line, the rhythms of the drums/percussion, the squelchy bass line – those are all fine things,. No I think it’s the throwaway lines that really makes this so good. Shannon and Jimi Tunnell, who sings the chorus really make the song so dynamic with the soaring chorus contrasting with the steady build of the verses. They  seem to push each other to reach higher and higher, partcularly Shannon, as she tackles the vocal key change with an elegant run up and a soaring leap “LET the music play“. And the song builds such that the first chorus takes me high, but there is a restraint, a knowledge that all should not be cried out before the grand finale.

There are some songs that as soon as I hear them, I have to get up and dance to them, I have no choice, there is something about them that is hypnotic, that connects direct with my body and instructs it onto the dancefloor. It is such a release to feel the beat and listen to and associate with the words. I’ve often felt like a complete incompetent dancing with anyone else on the dance floor, and not been surprised when they wander off at the end or even during a song. Which is why it’s so good to have a song I love dancing to to act as compensation for failed connections.

Write Here, Write Now: 11.14 – Close (To The Edit)

The Art of Noise – Close (To the Edit). “To be in England…close to the edge”

I liked this track because it was different – not a conventional pop song, and yet it had rhythm and melody of a sort and it resolves to a pleasurable climax.

Not many songs start with what you might call ‘realia’ – a car engine starting up and revving. I suppose there’s Pink Floyd’s Money, which  shares the idea of using the sound of coins in their song with the writer of the theme for ‘Are You Being Served’. Telephone and Rubber Band by the Penguin Cafe Orchestra – there’s another.

The song continues with a jerky, jumpy rhythm, odd samples get thrown into the mix. Individually, they all seem to rub each other up the wrong way. Yet there is a certain rough appeal of these squeaky, disconnected sounds being pulled together and glued in place by an insistent bassline and two cheerleading singers, interjecting their own heys and other contributions into the mix.

I think if it had continued like that until the end, just fading after yet another guest performance, but the samples in this one get gradually more glamorous. Just over the halfway mark, the synth starts getting all breathy, the summertime in England vocal kicks in, the tempo increases and, after a round of car startings, the synth horns and airy tones pump out a climactic sound .

It was an interesting, if frustrating song as there was great promise in all the sleevenotes, in the  sense that every sample linked to something equally meaningful, in the dancing instrument smashing video, but it never really seems to hang all together.

One thing I liked about it was the attention to detail that made this group feel like they were living artworks, tirelessly working to create entertaining and baffling pieces.

I think I was tipping over the precipice of gothdom with this song, mainly for the skeleton on the single cover, strangely making it, in retrospect, like a Joy Division record. At the time of getting the record, I was just happy to have this slightly different song, to match my slightly off kilter, rim side approach to the world.

Write Here, Write Now: 11.13 – I’m Falling

The Bluebells – I’m Falling  “Saying silly things that made no sense at all”

I hadn’t listened to this song in years, but the second I started listening to it I remembered why I fell in love with it all those years ago. Apart from the ending where it fades to silence rather than coming to a satisfying end, it is a perfect song, that progresses beautifully through its different stages,. adding different elements that just build to a delightful climax, drawing in all the elements to a little symphony of sound.

Like with many OMD songs, there’s an intriguing overture of an introduction that moves from mood music, through the entrance of the choppy rhythm guitar, sounding like several plucked violins, the voice that’s almost a capella, then the bass, grounding the song, little high tone peaks from the lead guitar and then the drums that jump into the gap between rhythm guitar and get the song really rolling forwards at a steady tempo.

Then just when the pace is set, the chorus is announced and kicks in, rolling down a delightful little gully. The chorus stops, there’s a brief verse , then straight back to the chorus and then the fuzzy, plunging guitar solo, churning away against the drums. Every time the chorus is about to start, the instruments stop, the singer teeters on the edge, then descends the slope.

Then, before it becomes repetitive, it shifts a gear, rousing harmonies leading the song to a triumphant finale, only slightly marred by fading away to silence.

It makes me so happy to hear this song, the mix of clear voices, easy rhythms, strong guitar interplay and confident, harmonising backing vocals supporting the lead vocals  like the rhythm guitar supports the lead guitar, particularly for the final assault, when the guitar solo is almost atonal the way it cuts in and out, as the vocals gush forth, pouring out their all, a glorious exhortation.

Of course, it’s in essence a sad song, told in a perky way. Bittersweet pleasures – probably what appealed most about it. Sad at heart, but with dancing feet and a giddy head – a good description of me as a teenager. It’s a song that fitted me to a t.

 

 

Write Here, Write Now: 11.12 – Raspberry Beret

Prince & The Revolution – Raspberry Beret “If I had the chance to do it all again”

Released towards the end of my time at school, in the 6th form which was mixed gender after three years of single sex education. For a shy teenage boy, the introduction of girls into the year was a strange novelty that took some getting used to and quickly led to the realisation that there were many others much more adept at socialising than I was.

This song was a burst of colour, a sweet dream of confidence, a world apart, of glamour and success – all wrapped up with Prince’s swagger, wink and smile. What was even better was that all the songs on ‘Around the World In A Day’ lived up to the pop sunshine promise of this single. Glorious light psychedelia, it is still my favourite album of his. though around that time, he could do pretty much no wrong.

Watching the video now, there is something about his expression of startled pleasure mixed with knowing irony in his eyes that reminds me of somebody. Then I realized – it’s Randy Rainbow, the internet musical satirist who seems to have inherited Prince’s fashion sense, attention to detail and playful disregard of convention.

I do like Prince’s seemingly effortless ability to take on different musical genres and instruments and his generous support and encouragement for his fellow musicians – the sort of optimistic approach to life that brings out the best in himself and those he worked with. Quite inspirational.

The intro is new to me – finger cymbals and funk guitar. I like it, but it feels bolted on to the string-laden main section that I know so well. One of the features I like about his songwriting is the way he lets a line wander off in some interesting direction leaving me feeling he’s got lost. then he gets straight back to the beat with some smart rhymes.

“Built like she was, she had the nerve to ask me if I planned to do her any harm
So, look here. I put her on the back of my bike and-a we went riding down by old man Johnson’s farm”

If you’d given me to two words,. ‘harm’ and ‘farm’,  there’s no way I could have come up with something as good as that.

For the next few years, purple would be the only bright colour I’d tolerate, as I soon nose-dived into goth. But back in the mid 80s, this sort of pop dance music was great joy for me.

Write Here, Write Now: 11.11 – Food For Thought

UB40 – Food for Thought “Christmas on it’s way.”

UB40 used to be so cool – a name heard alongside Madness, The Selector, The Beat, The Specials. And it was a rare treat to be able to afford the live album with a selection of their hits. I remember reading through the list of songs to see there were enough I knew and liked to justify vuxinehough.

I always thought the opening line was ‘I’m a prima donna”,  It’s nice to be able to be put right. It’s a gentle song, and puts me to sleeep. So,s sadly no more analyis tonight.

 

Write Here, Write Now: 11.10 – Heartbeat City

The Cars – Heartbeat City “nothin’ really gets us down”

It was the early to mid ’80s and in my life a lot of the music I consumed came through the videos of MTV. Heartbeat City the album was well represented by Drive, Magic, You Might Think. Rik Ocasek looked übercool, and he sounded pretty oddball, with his slightly tortured vocals.

And the songs fitted neatly into that sweet spot between mainstream pop and slightly off centre melodies and flourishes. A bit like OMD. And like OMD, this track starts off with a little overture of electronic noises, pleasant to listen to, but doubtlessly intended to contrast with the rest of the song.

With Heartbeat City, there’s a somewhat mournful feel to Ocasek’s voice. That, accompanied by fellow performers seemingly playing their instruments without warmth lends a beautiful cold sheen to the track.

I’m sure I rolled up the sleeves of my jacket, put up the collar and shuffled around with my forearms raised to this little beauty.In my mind I was as transatlantic as The Psychedelic Furs and one the characters from a John Hughes movie – preferably Bender, a name that does rather get lost in translation from Illinois to a British secondary school.

Music can be a real time capsule. Listening to it now, I feel myself transported back to the mid eighties, with all the different challenges, albeit fewer responsibilities than now. when there does seem to be quite a bit of counting on thumbs.